The Le Cuvier Principals and Staff

John Munch, co-owner, wine herd/winemaker, & Elliptical Pontificator

Mary Fox, co-owner & president, CFO, & Omnipotent Organizer

Robin Graham,  assistant winemaker/Systems Sage

Tiani Bajema, wine club manager/office & sales

Doug Bates, administrator of sales & events

Jim Fox, director of sales

Diane Flores-Duffy, promotion & sales

John Munch. The origins of Le Cuvier's winemaker & co-owner harken to another land & time. While out crabbing, the Chupete Indians of Costa Rica found Munch, a toothless toddler, amongst mosquitoes & mangrove roots in the littoral swamps of the Caribbean coast. The particulars of his birth & lineage remain unclear. In his formative years, it is said, Munch was taken from the Chupete tribe by a missionary dragline operator & his wife, & variously educated in secular & missionary schools throughout Central America. He ultimately completed his education in California, where he almost acquired a post-graduate degree in early West-Saxon poetry.

Since, Munch has gained a fine reputation as founder & winemaker of several failed winery operations in the Paso Robles area, & with partner Mary Fox, he now persists in running Le Cuvier winery. As Wine Herd, Munch sees his role as shepherd to the "feral beasties" that accompany the finest fruit from the finest vineyard into the winery, allowing grapes to interact and ferment in their own natural state, free of intervention from such effete constructs as commercial strains of yeast. Providing the right musical sound track to enhance this ideal environment appears to be his only useful contribution to the winemaking process.

 Mary Fox, Le Cuvier co-owner/president, and Doctor of Organizational Psychology, was researching the possibility of investing in vineyard property on California’s Central Coast in 2000 when she serendipitously engaged Munch as consultant for her project. She soon became entrapped by the glamour and deeply refined complexity of the Le Cuvier operation, and shortly thereafter joined Munch as an equal partner in the winery. In addition to her considerable professional skills, Dr. Fox also brought much needed cash to the partnership. She appears to have found a life project in her new association, where she now applies all her energies in an attempt to create organizational order.

Robin Graham, assistant winemaker, joined the Le Cuvier operation in mid-2009 after a whirlwind education in viticulture and enology at Washington State University. He grew up in a small town north of Seattle and claims to have always had an interest in agriculture and all things gastronomical, thus making him eminently qualified for work at Le Cuvier. He was particularly drawn to the unique properties of grapes grown in Paso Robles, as well as John Munch's distinctive winemaking style. Robin's winemaking knowledge is enhanced by a keen appreciation for many things digital, so we use him to tend to the winery's various computer issues. When he's not tending to wine or wires, he can be seen cavorting with his twin, who bears an uncanny resemblance to an iPhone.

Tiani Bajema, wine club manager and office administrator, joined the Le Cuvier staff in 2001, thus she knows where the skeletons are buried. She left us for a short time to start a family, but she couldn't stay away. Today, Tiani is the Mistress of Multi-tasking, and she is the primary contact for Elliptical Society members who have questions about their shipments or membership information. She also takes great pride in preparing the exquisite hors d’oeuvres that guests enjoy on our tasting weekends. When she is not holding our collective hands at Le Cuvier, she dotes lovingly on her husband and two small children.

Doug Bates, administrator of sales and events, first began volunteering for Le Cuvier events in 2006, and as he says, “fell in love with the circus that is Le Cuvier.” In 2008, weary of his managerial life in the corporate retail world, and driven by his love for wine, Doug set out to work in the wine industry, where lo and behold, John and Mary had a position that suited his sales and managerial talents. If anything is to be coordinated at Le Cuvier, Doug coordinates it. He is the primary contact for members with questions about events and purchases. He pushes piles of paper and crunches lots of numbers but loves doing so if it means sharing Le Cuvier with the world. He also occasionally likes to rabble rouse, but he goes about it very politely and always with a smile.

Jim Fox, director of sales, has this to share about himself: "I have resided in idyllic tropical, as well as stark, moonscape locales….I was a serious student early on, and wanted to quit elementary school because they had recess….Went through a personal catharsis as a college freshman, and decided not to let the hallowed halls of academia interfere too much with my education during those vibrant undergraduate years in the 1960’s…..I have been a consort, parent, encyclopedia reiceadair, haberdasher, tree hanger, escort, waterman, romantic, pot-walloper, jardinier, soldier, real estate coordinator and hawker, beverage imbiber and peddler, storyteller, publican supporter, restaurateur, abacist, sham prober, counselor, rug and furniture sprzedawca, & savoir faire wine sales impresario …. " Visit the winery & let Jim pour for you.

Diane Flores-Duffy, sales and promotion, joined the staff in 2004 as wine club administrator, but efficiently worked herself out of a job when the Elliptical Society first filled up. She never really disappeared, though, volunteering for events and shamelessly promoting Le Cuvier while pursuing other opportunities in the wine world. In late 2009, John and Mary realized a need for more proselytizing, and knew Diane’s previous life as a journalist, coupled with her passion for wine and words, would be a good match. In addition to putting together Web site content, newsletters and other promotional material, Diane pours at the winery and sings the praises of all things Elliptical to whomever will listen.